Most Common Monikers

Bella, the most popular female puppy name of the year, made the top 10 for every breed on this list. It was No. 1 for six
small dog breeds (with eight total appearances in the top three), which is particularly interesting given that Bella only nabbed that top spot for one medium and two large breeds. Max fared just about as well, with a top-10 spot for all 10 small breeds, eight of them in the top three and five at No. 1.

Other names that popped up over and over in the top three were Buddy with seven appearances, Molly with six and Daisy with five.

Breed-Specific Names

Some of these names were so perfect for certain breeds that they didn't show up in the top three for any other breeds. The
Pug, for example, was the only breed with Pugsley, and nobody but the
Chihuahua had Chico at the top of the list. But it was really the
Pomeranian who had the standout names among the small breeds. The top female name, Foxy, certainly fits this Spitz breed's fox-like appearance. Two of the top three most popular male Pom names were also related to this cute little guy's appearance: Teddy and Bear. Aww.

What About Poodles?

Wondering where the Poodles are? It's true; the Miniature and
Toy Poodles both belong in the small breed category, and, in fact, would rank as the AKC's second most popular small breed after the
Yorkie. However, the data for the most common names of
Poodles was not broken down into Toy, Miniature and Standard, so we elected to leave it out of the slideshow. The top
Poodle names lined up pretty well with many of the other popular names on this list: Molly, Bella and Daisy for females; and Max, Buddy and Charlie for males.